Dalmatian rub is the name given to that simple mixture of salt and pepper used by pit masters across Texas.  (Black and white, the coloring of a Dalmatian—get it?)  Link to recipes at https://barbecuebible.com/recipe/dalmatian-rub/

Tashkent, Uzbekistan’s capital, is home to one of the world’s most ornate subway systems.  Many of its 29 stations are elaborately decorated with mosaics and chandeliers, the artwork reflecting a range of themes—from the Soviet space program to elements of local history, industry and agriculture.  The Tashkent Metro, which opened in 1977, is one of only two subways in operation in Central Asia.  (The other is in Almaty, Kazakhstan.)  Trains run from 5 a.m. until midnight, and a single ride costs 1,400 som, or about 15 cents.  Photographs by Danielle Villasana  Text by Stephen Hiltner  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/20/travel/tashkent-uzbekistan-subway.html

The history of tea dates back to ancient China, almost 5,000 years ago.  According to legend, in 2732 B.C. Emperor Shen Nung discovered tea when leaves from a wild tree blew into his pot of boiling water.  He was immediately interested in the pleasant scent of the resulting brew, and drank some.  Legend says the Emperor described a warm feeling as he drank the intriguing brew, as if the liquid was investigating every part of his body.  Shen Nung named the brew "ch'a", the Chinese character meaning to check or investigate.  In 200 B.C. a Han Dynasty Emperor ruled that when referring to tea, a special written character must be used illustrating wooden branches, grass, and a man between the two.  This written character, also pronounced "ch'a" symbolized the way tea brought humankind into balance with nature for the Chinese culture.  The popularity of tea in China continued to grow rapidly from the 4th through the 8th century.  No longer merely used for its medicinal properties, tea became valued for everyday pleasure and refreshment.  Tea plantations spread throughout China, tea merchants became rich, and expensive, elegant tea wares became the banner for the wealth and status of their owners.  The Chinese empire tightly controlled the preparation and cultivation of the crop.  It was even specified that only young women, presumably because of their purity, were to handle the tea leaves.  These young female handlers were not to eat garlic, onions, or strong spices in case the odor on their fingertips might contaminate the precious tea leaves.  Read much more at http://www.coffeeteawarehouse.com/tea-history.html

Cumbersome meaning, unwieldy, burdened, awkward comes from cumber + some – and cumber comes from a French word, which derives from Latin and means . . . cumbersome.  In looking this up I came across cumberworld, a seven hundred year old word for anything or anyone that encumbers the world without being useful . . . Cumberland is over a thousand years old--the name for that north-western area of the country, the area whatever it’ is called is much older, and now it is called Cumbria, an unpopular name.  The name Cumberland still exists as Cumberland sausages, HMS Cumberland , Cumberland County Cricket Club , the Cumberland Fell Runners Club, the Cumberland Athletics Club, The Cumberland News, the Cumberland Building Society and many more examples.  Cumberland has nothing at all to do with being unwieldy, and is not a Latin/French name, in fact it is much older--Cumbra land which came from ‘the region of the Cymry’.  This, you might be able to guess has to do with the country known by its English name of Wales, rather than its own correct name of Cymru.  Cucumber, by the way has nothing to do with either cumbersome of Cumberland--it’s another word of French origin, though, which in turn came from Latin--cucumis . . . Cummerbund is nothing to do with  English places, Welsh places, or salad vegetables--it comes from Persian via Hindi and means ‘loin band’… Lois Elsden  https://loiselsden.com/2018/08/28/cumbersome-cumberland-cucumbers-and-cummerbunds/

The most popular legend of coffee in Ethiopia usually goes something like this:  One day in a highland area near an Abyssinian monastery, a goat herder from Kaffa named Kaldi was herding his goats.  The goats began to jump around—almost dancing—and bleat loudly, which was strange behavior for his herd.  Kaldi found that a small shrub (or a cluster of shrubs, according to some legends) was the source of the excitement.  Deciding to try the bright red berries for himself, Kaldi also felt the coffee cherries' energizing effects.  Amazed at this discovery, the goat herder filled his pockets and rushed home to tell his wife.  Calling the find "heaven sent," she advised Kaldi to share the berries with the monks.  Kaldi did not receive the warmest of welcomes at the monastery.  One monk referred to his coffee beans as "the Devil's work" and tossed them into the fire.  According to the legend, the aroma that wafted up from the roasting beans caught the monks' attention.  After removing the beans from the fire and crushing them to extinguish the embers, they attempted to preserve them in a ewer filled with hot water.  Yemen also has a coffee origin myth (or two) as well as a well-founded stake in the beverage's actual history.  The first legend from Yemen is rather basic by comparison to the Kaldi myth.  However, in an interesting twist, it attributes the origin of coffee to Ethiopia:  The Yemenite Sufi mystic Ghothul Akbar Nooruddin Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili was traveling through Ethiopia, presumably on spiritual matters.  He encountered some very energetic birds that had been eating the fruit of the bunn plant (known elsewhere as the coffee plant).  Weary from his journey, he decided to try these berries for himself and he found that they produced an energetic state in him as well.  The second coffee origin myth from Yemen claims that coffee originated in Yemen.  The story is centered around Sheikh Omar, a doctor-priest and a follower of Sheik Abou'l Hasan Schadheli from Mocha, Yemen, who was exiled to a desert cave close to the mountain of Ousab.  Lindsey Goodwin  https://www.thespruceeats.com/the-origin-of-coffee-765180

What’s the difference between a filler word and a filter word?  They overlap in function, but on average have two different effects on your prose.  Filler words take up space and expand things that don’t need to be expanded.  Filter words can also expand, but their negative power comes in another way.  Filter words serve to push your reader out of the story:  they get in between the reader and the action.  They run some aspect of the story—most often the emotional impact—through a verbal filter that takes away from what the author is trying to achieve.  That’s why they’re called “filter words.”  Christopher Daly   Find list of filter words at https://thebettereditor.wordpress.com/2019/11/06/filter-words/

Thomas Curson Hansard (1776–1833) was a London printer and publisher, who was the first official printer to the parliament at Westminster.  Hansard is the traditional name of the transcripts of Parliamentary Debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries.  https://librivox.org/author/12225?primary_key=12225&search_category=author&search_page=1&search_form=get_results

What is caffeine?  Caffeine is a bitter substance that occurs naturally in more than 60 plants including:  Coffee beans, Tea leaves, Kola nuts, which are used to flavor soft drink colas, and Cacao pods, which are used to make chocolate products.  There is also synthetic caffeine, which is added to some medicines, foods, and drinks.  For example, some pain relievers, cold medicines, and over-the-counter medicines for alertness contain synthetic caffeine.  So do energy drinks and "energy-boosting" gums and snacks.  Most people consume caffeine from drinks.  The amounts of caffeine in different drinks can vary a lot, but it is generally:  an 8-ounce cup of coffee:  95-200 mg, a 12-ounce can of cola:  35-45 mg, an 8-ounce energy drink:  70-100 mg, an 8-ounce cup of tea:  14-60 mg.  What are caffeine's effects on the body?  Caffeine has many effects on your body's metabolism.  It stimulates your central nervous system, which can make you feel more awake and give you a boost of energy, Is a diuretic, meaning that it helps your body get rid of extra salt and water by urinating more; increases the release of acid in your stomach; sometimes leading to an upset stomach or heartburn; may interfere with the absorption of calcium in the body; and   increases your blood pressure.  Within one hour of eating or drinking caffeine, it reaches its peak level in your blood.  You may continue to feel the effects of caffeine for four to six hours.  https://medlineplus.gov/caffeine.html

A stroopwafel is two thin waffle cookies sandwiched together with caramel in the middle, it’s not fancy, just simple and delicious.  The idea is that you put one of these cookies on top of your hot tea cup or coffee mug and it heats the caramel filling on the inside and softens the cookie.  How good does that sound?   With or without warming them they’re delicious.  https://www.costcuisine.com/post/costco-original-stroopwafels-cookie-review

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY  I think that I shall never see / A poem lovely as a tree. - (Alfred) Joyce Kilmer, journalist and poet (6 Dec 1886-1918)

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2193  December 6, 2019